Is China's economy really bigger than Japan's?

Last week, China passed Japan as the world's second-biggest economy. But this fact isn't as significant as it seems, says Cris Sholto Heaton. Here, he explains why measuring China's GDP is fraught with difficulty, and how China really stacks up when compared to its Asian neighbours.

The headline-grabbing story last week was that China has passed Japan as the second largest economy in the world. But is this a milestone? Not really. This week I'll be looking at why China has been larger than Japan for years - or is still far behind, depending on how you look at it.

China is still a poor country

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Cris Sholto Heaton

Cris Sholto Heaton is an investment analyst and writer who has been contributing to MoneyWeek since 2006 and was managing editor of the magazine between 2016 and 2018. He is especially interested in international investing, believing many investors still focus too much on their home markets and that it pays to take advantage of all the opportunities the world offers. He often writes about Asian equities, international income and global asset allocation.

Cris began his career in financial services consultancy at PwC and Lane Clark & Peacock, before an abrupt change of direction into oil, gas and energy at Petroleum Economist and Platts and subsequently into investment research and writing. In addition to his articles for MoneyWeek, he also works with a number of asset managers, consultancies and financial information providers.

He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst designation and the Investment Management Certificate, as well as degrees in finance and mathematics. He has also studied acting, film-making and photography, and strongly suspects that an awareness of what makes a compelling story is just as important for understanding markets as any amount of qualifications.